Direct proof of use
Ukrainian government and military-intelligence accounts identify the aircraft lost over Sloviansk on June 6, 2014 as an An-30B reconnaissance aircraft. Both accounts say it was photographing the area over Sloviansk, Donetsk Oblast, with an eight-person crew when it was struck at about 17:00 by a missile from a portable surface-to-air missile system.
Aviation Safety Network separately records a Ukraine Air Force Antonov An-30B, registration 80 yellow, destroyed near Drobyshevo/Slavyansk on the same date after being hit by ground fire. The Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives records the same loss as a military flight near Drobyshevo with eight crew aboard, five fatalities, three survivors, and a probable cause of being shot down.
Sources: Donetsk RSA An-30B Sloviansk, DIU An-30B Sloviansk Anniversary, ASN An-30B Slavyansk Accident, BAAA An-30B Drobyshevo Crash
Timeline
On June 6, 2014, the An-30B mission was flown over the Sloviansk area during the Donbas phase of the war. Ukrainian accounts place the aircraft at about 4,050 meters when the missile hit the right engine and started a fire.
After the hit, the commander ordered the crew to abandon the aircraft. Three crew members survived by parachute, while five crew members died before or during the crash. Ukrainian accounts state that remaining crew members steered the aircraft away from Sloviansk before it crashed north of the city, near Pryshyb.
Sources: Donetsk RSA An-30B Sloviansk, DIU An-30B Sloviansk Anniversary, BAAA An-30B Drobyshevo Crash
Narrative
The documented combat use of the An-30 in this conflict was reconnaissance rather than attack or transport. The aircraft's mission on June 6 was described as photographing territory above Sloviansk, consistent with the An-30B's aerial survey and reconnaissance role.
The loss also shows the vulnerability of a crewed reconnaissance aircraft operating over eastern Ukraine in 2014. Ukrainian sources attribute the missile to Russian or Russian-backed forces, while accident databases independently corroborate the aircraft type, Ukraine Air Force operator, location, destroyed airframe, and fatality count.
Sources: Donetsk RSA An-30B Sloviansk, DIU An-30B Sloviansk Anniversary, ASN An-30B Slavyansk Accident, BAAA An-30B Drobyshevo Crash
